Finding Peace
by katie.grey.katie.grey
Summary: As the lone survivor of the last wizards war. How will she cope in a new world filled with god's and monsters? Will she find the peace she never has before? Final in the Peace trilogy. OC witch. No parings decided. Rated for current content, rating will change in the future
1. Chapter 1

I own neither Marvel nor Harry Potter

**Chapter 1**

When she was born she was as normal a girl as it was possible to be. There were no complications in either her pregnancy or birth, she was born to parents who loved each other very much and had grown to love her in an exponential rate to her own growth in her mother's womb. She came into the world cared for, healthy, and loved. She basked in the love and attention of her family, yes for the first two hours of her life she could want for nothing, but such things were not to last.

she tumbled down the road a few feet, maybe a couple of yards, rolling to a stop she took a second to assess herself, she felt like she was in one piece, she could feel her fingers and toes. she wasn't in any pain, which was kinda new. Opening her eyes she found herself laying on a concrete sidewalk, it was warm but not hot, like a sidewalk should feel in the shade on a warm spring day. Looking around she could tell that it was spring or at least a spring like day with flowers in bloom and sun shining. She took in all these details in the second since she had stopped rolling, her arms already lifting her, it took a moment to register the sounds around her. the shouts and screams of people and running feet filled her ears. Taking in more of her surroundings showed everyone running away from her location and a large portal that hung in the air behind and above her, in much the same way that masonry doesn't. It took her only a moment to realize it wasn't her they were running from or even the portal behind her, but what was coming through the portal at an alarming rate. Beings in flying chariots poured through the opening, darkening the sky in their numbers, giant flying beasts soared through with a grace that belied their size and armor. For a moment she stood in awe watching as things of all shape, size, and color flew through the air at random, spreading through the large city she found herself in. One more second she allowed amaze and disbelief to pause her before she threw herself into the fray.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Tony looked down to the street he had almost met face to face with rather recently, from inside his suit and flying over at high speeds it took up much less of his attention which was a good thing because the trio of chitauri chariots filled with soldiers firing at him took up quite a bit. Even with most of his attention diverted he noticed someone rolling along the ground where he had been earlier, he calculated their trajectory subconsciously and determined that they must have come from the portal as well. As he watched them roll to a stop, they push themselves to their feet immediately and turned to begin fighting. His attention was averted again when his comms crackled to life. His team had arrived, with a quip and an instruction he planned to shake his pursuers and circle around back to the person fighting in the street, whether to help or to put down was undecided, but as they say man plans and God laughs. out of the portal a new fun had just joined the party. Tony watched as what he could only call a giant space whale flew through the portal, and to add fun to fun, thousands of individual chitauri warriors leapt from the beast anytime it neared anything. some lept down to street level and begin pulling rifles and firing on anything that moved. Where was Banner, they could really use a heavy hitter right now? The only thing Tony could do was try to stall it and find a weakness he told the team to let him know when Banner arrived and using himself as bait began leading the Levithan (he had decided Levithan was a much better name) on a route around the city that was large enough to maneuver in but small enough that with any luck would form a perimeter to keep the fighting contained. As he flew and J.A.R.V.I.S. analyzed the enemy for weakness, he caught sight of something dark gray then a flash of purple then an explosion. If it wasn't for the purple it would have been just another explosion in what he admitted was now a war zone. He took a second glance and saw that it was a chariot that had exploded and the person responsible for that explosion was the same one that he had seen fighting on the street. A lighter purple flash drew his attention from the burning chariot and back to the person responsible, he saw what appeared to be a light purple force field protecting a small group of civilians as they ran for a subway entrance just a few steps away. A single chitauri soldier had survived the crash and was now firing on the panicked people but nothing seemed to pass through the purple shield. Before he could see more he was out of range. Speaking to his AI Tony said "J keep track of that friendly." a smooth British voice rang out into the helmet in an unpanicked and unhurried tone amidst explosions and speed of battle said "Yes sir, what shall I call our new friend?"

Tony said, without thinking, the first word that he associated with the half seen person fighting alongside them or at least for the same cause. "Gray" he said. "Ally designated gray, I shall keep an eye on them sir" replied the smooth voice. Switching to the team comms channel he broadcast "we have a friendly fighting with us, if it's gray and purple give it a chance"

There comm became active but nothing was said about their new friend only the sounds of and engine coming closer before the black widow came on saying Banner was back.

With the death of the first Levithan the team found themselves together and back to back. Plans were made, orders issued and everyone separated to their assigned tasks. Hawkeye was the next to glimpse the figure in gray, they appeared as a Levithan rounded the corner of a building riding on it's back, a small crowd of chariots hovered around one side firing a furious barrage at the figure who had formed a purple shield with one hand to protect themselves and was waving furiously at the back of the Levithans head. With each slashing motion of her hand and arm a deep gouge would appear in the armor of the great beast. He watched in fascination as this woman (he could tell she was a woman by her shape and outfit.) threw one last cut into the chasm she had carved through the armor and winced, his hands covering his ears when the Levithan let out a scream that seemed to have no end of volume. It chilled his soul to hear the dying screams of this other worldy monster, and that's all he could do was hear it, as the rider, her mount, and her pursuer had passed out of his field of vision. Without conscious thought, the action being engrained in him through countless repetitions, he keyed his mic and gave a status update to his team. He gave targeting instructions to iron Man, enemy movements to Captain America, and checked the status of the ground team. Before going back to his own fight he updated the team on their Ally "Ally is female wearing dark grey, she's capable, assist when possible." After a brief silence the winded voice of the Captain came on the line and said just two words, they came out as an order, one that would be obeyed "how capable?" Hawkeye nocked an arrow as he replied "I saw her take down a whale while fending off a whole pack of these flying things" a slight hint of awe still in his voice. "She also has some sort of force field that can stop these things" the comms were quiet for a moment before the Captain came back on "acknowledged" was all that was said.

Natasha was the next to see the woman in gray. They didn't stop, they just didn't stop coming. If she was honest with herself she knew they couldn't win, not the way they were going, there were just too many. It's a good thing she was an expert at lying. She literally was a professional liar, and she had taken to using her skills on herself, she told herself that if she did enough she could be a good person. She told herself that if she used the skills she had to help and protect people that the scales may just balance when her time came to be judged. She told herself these things with all the skill she possessed. She repeated this to herself everyday and acted as if she believed it. So she was well versed in self deception when she told herself that if she just kept fighting, kept going, kept trying, then maybe she could save another person. Just one more, just keep fighting, if you stop you die, that's as it should be, but other people could die and she couldn't let that happen as long as she still had fight left. Her guns lay in their holsters at her thighs empty of ammo, she had more, a whole belt full of clips, she just didn't have time to reload. These things were everywhere and persistent, no sooner was one out of the path of her bullet than five more were there to take their place. She had switched to her knives and widow bites a while ago. She knew she was in peak physical condition, even better than really, her enhancements made her stronger, faster, more durable and gave her greatly increased stamina, but even with these advantages and her lifetime of training she was slowing down. She knew. She knew she would die here, that they would lose, had probably already lost. She knew all this and she lied to herself. The call came over the comms about civilians trapped in a bank and she nodded to the Captain as he left to take care of it. She thought it was probably the last time she would ever see him but gave a witty reply about holding down the fort. Clint had joined them on the ground at some point, time really was meaningless in the heat of battle, all that mattered was the enemy currently in front of you if you lost concentration at any time or made any mistake it was going to be your last. She looked over at Clint as they fought side by side again and carried on a casual conversation about old times. It was a method of preventing tunnel vision, old times were safe, they had been through old times together and come out the other side. Partner was the only word that could describe what was between Clint and herself. She had started as his mission. She was to be put down, no ifs ands or buts, but that hadn't happened. When the time came he gave her a choice, she didn't know it at the time but he gave her much more than, he had given her a chance at salvation. She woul find out later that he had risked his own life to give her that choice. She loved Clint. She would never say it, she was famous for saying love is for children, but she did love him with all of her heart. They weren't together, they had been in the past and sometimes still danced around each other, but she would be in his life in whatever capacity she could forever. It felt fitting that they would die together, there was nobody she would rather be with at the end.

She did think it might be the end now. She was exhausted, there was never a second to catch her breath. Clint was amazing in a fight but he was just a man, completely unenhanced. She didn't expect their fight to last much longer. She quietly snickered under her breath as a stray thought hit her 'after they lost she was gonna find Steve on the other side and see if they could split the number of people rescued in the bank, he was a nice guy he would probably give her half, it's not like he needs the weight in his scale.'

With the Captain gone she and Clint were slowly losing ground, as the number of chitauri surged and posed to crush them, Natasha prepared to say her final farewells to her love when a calm covered them. It wasn't just her, Clint also looked around in confusion and desperation, but all was calm, the noise of the battle still screamed in their ears and she didn't think she would ever not smell burning chitauri, but nothing else. The moment stretched on. She took a deep breath determined to keep going by her lies. she drew both guns and slammed fresh clips into them. She heard Clint doing the same. Looking around she noticed that everything had a slightly purple tint, the word purple connected with the words gray and Ally in her mind when she saw the source of her moments reprieve. Standing a few yards away the source of the purple tint, that was currently under a hail of chitauri fire, pointed one arm towards them palm facing them, the other slightly behind and away from herself glowed with a darker purple light mixed with black veins pulsing through. The light around her lowered hand seemed to concentrate becoming darker, more menacing looking. Without warning the gray woman threw what had to be the world's worse punch. her arm completely straight she swung from right to left all the way across her body. What Natasha didn't expect was the wall of purple flames that spread in a sweeping arc away from the woman. The purple and black fire seemed to tear as much as burn, rending thousands of chitauri soldiers limb from limb before consuming them fully. Natasha thought she must be tired as she began seeing shapes in the flames, thing that couldn't be there, beast and dragons. She watched as shapes in the flames consumed all they touched, nightmares from beyond human imagination roared in unrestrained fury as a wave of heat nearly blasted her off her feet. Slowly at first the fire seemed to lose its hate, it seemed to be shrinking, no, it was being withdrawn, being sucked back into the woman. Where before there was enemy and fire, now, after the flames had been recalled, they was only ash. Nothing stood where the chitauri army once surrounded them. Just them, her and Clint and the woman in gray, in the calm following such carnage Natasha noticed the purple tint was gone and the woman swaying slightly. When their Ally that had protected them dropped to one knee Natasha moved. She was on her way to her side before the woman's knee had even touched the ground. Before she could join her protector the chitauri returned, not in as many numbers, but more than enough to stop her from reaching the woman in gray. Lightening crackled and arched from body to body of chitauri warriors and again there was a lull in the fighting, and she looked but there was nobody in gray where she once stood. There's still too many. The captains back now, it's time for a new plan.

small, small, small, more I need more. Small, small, BIG. With a roar to shame all creatures the hulk lept to his new target, bashing down with both fists he was enraged when it didn't die. Reaching down he grabbed the edge of the crack he had just opened with his fists and lifted, the piece didn't come free easily it was more of a ripping and tearing away than a lifting away. The hard piece finally ripped free in a somewhat pointed triangle shape, which the hulk firmly stabbed right back into the creature. It roared in pain but still didn't die. Small, smalls all over him. He turned from the jagged metal stuck into BIG to crush the smalls that crawled over and around him and BIG. As the Levithan crashed through the building and ground, the hulk saw something. It's not that he saw something that was unusual what was unusual was what he saw made him pause this was something he knew, this person he had fought before but now they both fight together hulk would not smash this one, but it did fight so one punch would be ok.

Small, small, small. To many small. In front in back. It stings, not like before, the other stings there were just as many but they didn't burn too. They keep stinging. Arms legs back front face eyes, cover eyes. To many stings. No stings on that side. The hulk turns to the side away from the legion of chitauri chariots raining a continuous stream of fire on him. Almost hidden in the shadows of his towering bulk was a small gray person, streaming from her outstretched hand a purple light extended to shield a 90° angle that seemed to absorb the chitauri fire. The stings against the hulks back didn't bother him much he was a big guy and could take the damage easily, so after he had turned and no direct fire was pelting his face and eyes he looked and found a small. This wasn't like the other Smalls this one wasn't hurting him and it seemed to be stopping him from being hurt at least on that side. Gray and purple, another pause, not like before, but kinda. He had never fought this one, but she seemed to be fighting smalls, again the same as him. A feeling in his head, not his own, the other guy, small, but the feeling is a good one about gray and purple. Hulk won't smash this small. Through the purple field the hulk jumped aiming for the smalls that sting. Now it's hulk turn.

Steve ran with every ounce of strength in his body he had to be faster. Sliding slightly as he turned into the bank he charged in, guns blazing and shield held high. He had planned this on the sprint here. They have superior numbers everywhere, his best chance to rescue these people was a surprise attack. Usually when he planned a surprise attack he liked to set things up a little differently. Like scouting the battlefield before hand and coordinating with his team to establish fields of fire and evac routes. Running into an enclosed space, with non combatants, an unknown number of enemys, with unknown weapons, limited ammo, and no backup. Not his best plan but times a luxury right now and people's lives depend on him. It's the best he can hope for really, enemy and civilians separated on different floors, at least he won't have to worry about holding back.

Outside of the bank Captain America slowly extracts himself from the wreckage of the car he had just been on, not in but on. As he regained his feet a wave of exhaustion swept over him and he leaned against the remains of the car and looked to the sky. It should have been the same, the same sky he was use to. There sky was a constant for him in an ever changing world, and this sky should be the most familiar. This was his home, at least geographic speaking, it was where he grew up. It was even the same sky during the war, it didn't matter where he was, he could always look up and the sky was there. Oh it was always changing, overcast, sunny, raining, day, night, stars, no stars. Yes it changed, but it was always there, timeless and eternal. Or so he thought, just now when he looked up to the sky he didn't see it, all he saw were enemies and a dark hole that seemed to breath death into the world and in concentration into his home. There was no stopping them, there were too many. There outside of the bank in the middle of the street Captain America quit. His head hung, the sounds and smells of battle familiar to him, it felt as if he'd spent his whole life fighting. He fought himself first, his own frail body his worse enemy, but he fought, he would have lost that fight eventually but he didn't. Fighting to fight was kinda funny in a way, he visited every recruiter he could get to, more than once, he would track down and talk to anyone that anyone said could help him enlist. Even after he was a soldier, a super soldier even, he still had to fight to fight. They had wanted a mascot, an inspiration to a country in the grips of war. But that wasn't why he joined. In the end he had had to disobey orders, and steal government property, but he got to fight. Fighting was something he was good at, he could see the battle in his mind and his troops and assets. He could plan the best strategy for missions effortlessly. He knew his team, their abilities, their resources, and their enemy. this time there was no plan for victory. There wasn't even a plan for survival. He would die today fighting, always fighting. What was the point now? They were outnumbered a thousand to one? A million? Did it even matter? No, no it didn't matter anymore, not with a nuclear missile bearing down on his home. He had seen the video of how the war ended and he was horrified at the carnage, even against an enemy there were lines you don't cross. But America has crossed them more than once, and now they proved they were still willing to cross it again. And the Captain quit. He followed the progress of a group of chitauri chariots as they flew closer, the line of fire coming down the street in spectacular fashion as cars, buses, even asphalt itself exploded into the air proceeding the group of flying chariots. People that had been evacuating the bank behind him began running in a more panicked pace, some back into the bank, some towards the nearby subway entrance. the Captain stood and watched, he made no move to bring his shield to bear. He he stood exhausted in mind, body, and spirit, he watched as death came for them all.

He didn't see where it had come from but the air behind was filled with steaks of purple, hundreds of purple balls of light sought out chitauri soldiers, and chariots fell from the sky by the dozens as a gray streak flashed overhead and out of sight in pursuit of more enemies. The nearest car lay on it's roof and burned, it took him a moment to realize that it was the same car he had been on and leaning on just moments before. Had he really been that close? He had almost died, no that's not right, he had almost let himself be killed. He had done nothing to stop it. What was the point of having the greatest shield ever made? With that sobering thought something inside him broke apart and fell away. Yes he was gonna die today. that was where every plan and strategy ended, but damned if he wasn't gonna make them earn it the hard way. He lifted this shield in front of his chest and chinched the leather strap tighter. Under his breath he repeated the mantra that had never failed him, whether it was said as a phrase to help with is breathing in his childhood, in alleys bleeding as he stood once again, or in the dead of winter when supplies are low so is moral and the only thing in abundance is enemies "I can do this all day" he whispered.

He spotted a police cruiser and several officers helping the bank evacuation and went over to coordinate the efforts of local law enforcement and his team, after a brief interruption the officers agreed to set up a containment perimeter. With one last longing look to the sky Captain America rejoined the fight with no one the wiser that he had lost faith.

It was hard not to get lost in the thrill of battle, and what a battle it was. The chitauri were not powerful beings, each being slightly larger and stronger than midguardians, no what made them worthy foes was their numbers and coordination. It didn't help that they were technologically superior to midguardians meaning that most of Earth's weapons and soldiers were all but useless. Only a handful of midguardians would be more than a hindrance in this fight. The team he was with being the exception. The team was made up of only exceptional people, each one dangerous and intelligent on their own but as a team it was one that he was proud to count himself among. And they were a team now, if only they had realized sooner, this wanton destruction may have been avoided. It has taken the death of one they had all called friend and respected in their own ways, for their own reasons, to become united in a common goal. The son of Coul was a good man who had cared about the people he protected, it was a rare and special thing to find such a protector, and a great tragedy when one is lost. He feared it may be too late, if the portal had been prevented from opening then victory would not bear such cost. He had not planned on a fight of this magnitude when he had come to retrieve his brother. he wished merely to reunite his family with one thought to be lost forever. What had his pride and arrogance of youth wrot? when would he be finished paying the cost? He laid the blame for all that transpired around him and his own feet. The glory of the battles he had not shared as he should, the spoils of victory unevenly weighted. Why had he never embraced his brother in front of the cheering crowds. Why had stories of his conquest both on and off the field of battle drown out his brothers? Even in the retelling Thor's voice could often be heard to cover his brothers words. And now this, this cry for help and attention and validation. This was all his fault, if he had been a better brother, a better man then his brother world be at his side where he belonged instead of against him.

Thor heard they did not fight alone and had seen a gray figure several times around the battle. He had seen that she was female and rather small, he had not had more than a passing glance so it was difficult to say as most midguardians were small to him. The first time he was able to see more than a mere glimpse he had descended from the tops of the buildings where he was casting lightening down to any chitauri in his sight, to the street levels as he saw the black widow and Hawkeye becoming overwhelmed. Before he'd reached them a great flame rushed forth consuming all who stood before them. When the purple flames receded he saw only three remained standing Hawkeye, the black widow, and the lady in gray. They wouldn't remain alone for long. Already chitauri soldiers were surrounding the three. When the gray clad maiden wavered then dropped to one knee he took action. Thor swung his legendary hammer downwards and released lightening that jumped from body to body as it coursed through the enemy ranks. Landing between lady Natasha and the lady in gray he saw that she was already regaining her footing. When she had stood to her full height he was able to tell that she was small, she appeared to be smaller than his love Jane who was not gifted with great height herself. She also just seemed smaller, tiny, he could easily imaging her as a child. She fought well though, he wasn't sure he would trade one of the warriors three or Sif for her, but he would definitely fight at her side.

She took a moment to look around, amid all of the burning and bleeding bodies of chitauri soldiers and their ashes she stood tall. With only a nod of her head to Thor she glanced into the sky in front of her the made a jump that would be impossible for any midguardian, fifteen feet straight into the air where she caught hold of a passing chitauri chariot. In the distance he saw a shadow leap from the chariot to another moments before the first exploded.

She watched as the red and gold metal suit streaked through the middle of the battlefield. it seemed to be carrying a missile of some kind. She followed it's progress towards the building that was the source of the portal in the sky and quietly cheered when it cleared the building flying straight up into the portal. She wasn't far, having ridden a string of exploding chariots in that direction. She watched as every chitauri that had come through the portal suddenly froze, no matter where they were or what they were doing, and dropped. Like broken toys scattered on the floor, the first intergalactic war that Earth participated in was over. With no enemy to fight she did the only thing left, she followed the metal suit into the portal.

The darkness was familiar to her, too bright, far far too bright, but familiar. so was the silence, it took a great force of will not to succumb to the memories the silence carried. her eyes locked on to the red and gold suit floating in the distance. It hung in empty space cold and dark, she could feel the life inside the suit fading. Propelling herself further from the light and warmth of the world she had only known for a short time. reaching the metal suit she gripped it by the arm and turned dragging the suit behind her. She experienced a moment of shear terror when she didn't immediately see the light from the portal. She relaxed minutely when she spotted the small circle of white light, from this side the portal looked like the entrance to the promise land just as much as it looked like the gates to hell from the other side. But was it that far? Had they drifted in the abyss so far as to make salvation such a dim hope? These thoughts ceased as the light continued to dim despite willing herself and her cargo to the portal at an increasing rate of speed. Power arched from her in purple flashes of light, the purple only lighter than the blackness surrounding them by the smallest of degrees, as she slammed into the place where the portal had been the moment before. The portal had closed, the barrier between worlds was in place once more, but it was weak still. Maybe just maybe if she pushed, poured everything she had into it, it had happened before.

Natasha gripped Loki's scepter, she doubted they would be able to pry it from her hands even in her final judgement. she knew the weight in her hands she would carry onto the scales. She stared into the clear blue sky, from up here she could have looked down upon the clouds like a goddess of old, but she knew what she would see if she looked down, just death and destruction, it was the same thing above her. She had just killed two people. Two people that had fought by her side, who had saved her life. She knew the bonds forged in the heat of battle could be strong and fast, she couldn't even lie to herself and deny they were her friends. Just like she couldn't lie about killing them, sure she could say she was following the Captains orders, or that they would have wanted it closed to keep everyone safe, they would have gladly made the sacrifice. But she knew, and this she would not lie about, not even to herself. So she stared into the clear blue sky of death and destruction holding the weight she knew she would carry forevermore.

A flash of purple light was all the warning she got before the world shook under the crack of thunder that preceded a web of purple lightening that seemed to stretch from one horizon to the other. bathing the whole world in a purple tint. As lightening danced across the sky in a light show never seen on Earth before, Natasha's eyes never strayed from the exact center. She doubted everything her eyes saw when a figure emerged from where the portal center previously hung high above even the tallest building. When that figure was attached to a familiar red and gold figure she feared to hope. The figures were falling, the gray one was alive and awake, she had turned in the air and now held the arm of the iron man sit with both hands. They were still falling fast but not straight down. the gray woman was trying to transition from falling to flying but the dead weight of Tony's suit, and their speed were against her. Natasha watched as the pair fell past her and away from the building. she watched as they got further away. She saw the gray one drop iron Man, he didn't fall far before skidding a long ways down the road. She saw the gray one fall very quickly after. She didn't slide down the road protected by a metal suit, no when she fell she rolled and bounced down the street.

She would have gone father but her rolling was stopped this time. Concrete buildings are not a good way to stop. She lay at the base of a building it was strangely quiet. That's probably what motivated her to move, rolling away from the building she forced her body to move. She made it to her hands and knees when a sharp pain made itself known in her rib cage. She winced in pain drawing a breath between her clinched teeth. The quick breath caused her coughing exhale, along with breath the red of her blood stood in stark contrast with the dust covered pavement. After a few moments coughing she placed one hand tightly to the ribs that were obviously broken, holding her side with one hand she pushed herself to her knees using the building as support. She had one foot under her and was preparing to stand when a strong arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her to her feet and supporting her weight easily she looked up into the face of the green man she had fought alongside earlier. She had watched this man kill a Levithan single handed with nothing but the strength of his muscles. He was surprisingly gentle when he scooped her up and cradled her in one arm.

Back with the team Tony was on the ground talking a mile a minute. But it was only his mouth moving, he didn't even know what he was talking about. His mind was racing, he remembered all the calculations. It was a one way trip, he should be dead. He had made his peace with that. He didn't get a chance to say goodbye. But he hoped his actions told the few he cared about how he felt about them. Here he was now laying in the middle of the street alive. How? As he rambled on, something about Shawarma, he saw the hulk join them. He knew when it was time for hero stuff Bruce would be there with them, even if it was in green form. "Whatcha got there big guy" he quipped, talking to the large green rage monster just like he would his friend Bruce was a calculated move. If he made one friend like this maybe he could make another.

The hulk grunted and lowered his arm to show the gray woman almost sitting curled up in the palm of hulks massive hand her back and head resting on the hulks arm. The woman lifted one hand and waved a little awkwardly. Tony noticed her other hand held tightly to her ribs. "Hey gray how are ya today" Tony greeted.

The blackness under the hood the woman wore was complete, it seemed that the deeper Tony looked the darker it became, time stretched on as Tony started into that abyss. After what felt like hours of being studied by this faceless being she moved, the hand she had waved with resumed it's former position but this time palm facing down, the hand tilted from side to side a few times in the universal "so-so" gesture. Tony nodded as best he could in his deactivated suit saying "yeah it's been one of those days". This seemed to set everyone off, amid the gales of laughter Natasha's voice came over the comms, "the days not over yet" was all she said. The group quieted quickly realizing that the cause of all this was at the top of the building directly in front of them. She rode with the hulk as he jumped and climbed from building to building using only one hand and being extra gentle in his landings. They joined the rest of the team and confronted the would be king.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

All that remained were seven. Shield had taken Loki into custody under Thor's watch. The tesseract would remain in Stark tower along with the avengers to guard it. The tower was remarkably intact, a credit to Tony's engineering genius. With Jarvis in charge of several drones and many supplies already on-site due to construction, the tower was habitable in a matter of hours. After cleaning up and tending to their wounds the avengers all gathered in the main lounge, the same lounge where Tony has confronted Loki on first reaching the tower. The Loki sized hole in the floor attracted a lot of sly glances and little smirks. Everyone was dressed casually, weapons close at hand, but casually dressed the adrenalin was beginning to wear off and a somber quiet settled over the room as everyone processed the days events. On one end of an over stuffed couch that had survived intact she lay curled into a ball already asleep, the exhaustion complete, she had fallen asleep before anyone else had returned from cleaning up. Where before she had worn a leather short and pants dark gray enough to be called black, now she wore a gray hoodie and tights. Between her position on the couch and her preference for hoods nobody could see her face without disturbing her sleep.

Consciousness came slowly. Before a single muscle twitched she was already gathering information. She was somewhere soft and warm, she felt clean and she could smell coffee. Sometime during her assessment she remembered where she was. She had fallen asleep surrounded by the purple she was fighting alongside yesterday. She uncurled herself and stood she wasn't in any pain, that was expected. What little soreness and stiffness vanished completely with a long stretch. She turned and shuffled on socked feet to the bar that was currently serving as a breakfast table. Climbing into an empty bar stool she wrapped her hands around the mug of hot chocolate that awaited her, leaning over she inhaled the sweet aroma before taking a careful sip and letting out a soft moan. She sat sipping her drink for a moment before she looked around. The rest of the team sat silently watching her. The unspoken question hung heavy in the air "who are you?" As the hooded face turned to each they each felt as if they were being measured, though the darkness was as impenetrable as ever the blank face seemed to as "can I trust you" as each persons turn under her gaze came they found themselves promising she could each to themselves in their own minds and hearts.

She looked to each person in the room, they were all here, as themselves. No masks. She was the only one. Slowly she reached up and lowered her hood. Almost everyone gasped at once upon seeing her face. Thor was there first to speak "she is but a babe still" he said softly, but in the silence of the room he was clearly heard by all. The first question came from Captain America who couldn't seem to take his eyes off her, "how old are you" his usual manners forgotten in his shock. A small frown crossed her face, that wasn't exactly an easy question. She quickly decided on as close to the truth as she could get. Looking around she didn't find anything to write on or with so she just wrote two twos on the bar top. Steve changed looks but only for a second did he look incredulous. She looked up from the bar and meet his eyes for the first time. He thought she had taken his breath away when he saw her face, when his eyes meet hers for the first time he decided that she could have them, all of the breaths from now on. Her eyes were a shade of purple he had never seen before, had never even imagine could exist. Steve was an artist so saying he has a passing familiarity with color is a safe bet, Steve knew that this color existed solely for her eyes. The most beautiful girl he had ever seen looked into his eyes and he could feel a great sadness it made him believe her. The next question came from where it was most expected, "so what do we call you? I can't keep calling you gray, even if it does fit the motif you have going on here." Tony asked.

She shrugged, not like she had amnesia and couldn't remember who she was, it conveyed the sense that she couldn't tell them who she was only because she hadn't decided yet.

Jarvis's voice interrupted the conversation announcing the emminant arrival of director fury and his second in charge agent Maria Hill.

Tony cursed the timing of their less than welcome guests, mentally designing a new set of security protocols for Jarvis. The girl drained the last of her mug in an unhurried fashion. The elevator dinged drawing everyone's attention only when both set of doors opened did they notice the girl, once again dressed in dark gray leather with her hood firmly in place. She slid into the empty space as soon as there doors had opened wide enough, as the doors fully opened she spun and leaned against the back wall. From her vantage she could see the back of a bald man wearing a long black trench coat and black boots, he was already in full stride, shouting questions and orders for information. He was followed closely by his second in command, a statuesque brunette in a dark blue shield uniform. She only saw her face for a split second through the closing doors but she saw that she was as beautiful as she had thought she would be. she let a smile creep upon her, she could hear the shouting man long after the doors closed and the elevator had begun it's decent.

Down on the streets was a hive of activity. Emergency and rescue crews searched through unstable buildings, climbing over and around debris in the hopes of saving everyone they could. Despite the levels of activity it was rather odd when no one noticed the gray woman emerge from the building at the epicenter of all the action. Still, she passed the crowds that had taken forming around Stark tower without a ripple of notice. She found herself watching as a crew assessed the stability of a building from which she could hear calls for help. Stepping forward she extended her hands in front of her and released a pulse of purple light that clung to every living thing it touched, clearly marking the location of everyone in the vicinity. With a wave of her hand all of the debris blocking entrance rose slowly into the air, much like masonry now does apparently. A wave of any color light washing over a person is bound to be noticed, when that light is purple, and it's user fresh in mind, it didn't take long for word to spread that a savior of countless lives was working side by side with anyone who's goals consisted of saving as many as possible. She stood under the stares of all that could see her, arms held above shoulder high with palms up. With a way cleared one woman, who had been being held back, sprinted into the building. She was followed by a small group calling for her. Several minutes passed with barely any movement around the woman in gray, a purple light inside the building could be seen growing brighter before six people exited, three who had followed the first in, each carrying or aiding another. The first out called to anyone that would answer for stretchers and medical personnel. This pattern repeated throughout the day. from building to building a crowd of rescuers, medical personnel, and reporters travelled through the city, many noticed that the shade that marked the lost varied with their health. The darker and more vibrant shades were found with the most un-injured, the palest shades could be seen only by lifting sheets of white. The pace of movement had increased after the first buildings were cleared, she had found a routine in finding, lifting, holding, releasing, moving then repeat. Several crews had formed around her, one waited for her at her next stop, another would rush in as soon as possible, another would carry any unable to walk, and yet another would ensure none were left behind when the rubble resettled. It was efficient. Long after night had fallen she could be found under the strong lights that had joined them on their journey through the city, debris had begun lifting more slowly and settling more quickly in the late afternoon. She had begun to show signs of strain hours ago. Now she faltered, she would have fallen had not someone caught her, she had faltered but the load she held aloft didn't. One hand held her waist, another from someone else reached up to hold her own steady. It was a picture that would come to symbolize the battle of new york, a hero doing what others can't, but held up and standing side-by-side with the people. "All right little lady, you've done enough for one day" a strongly accented voice said gently. Then louder and over her head he said "let's get her to the first aid tent, they'll have a place she can rest." It was in motion almost before it was said, the man who held her by the waist and the one to steady her hand were on either side of her. She stopped them at a corner where she could turn to return to Stark tower and nodded in its direction.

Natasha watched as the woman stood and stretched, her movements were smooth and fluid. She was shorter than herself and thinner, she could tell even though the large hoodie she wore. She studied the woman as she made her way from the lounge to the bar where everyone else had gathered. She could tell she wasn't moving as gracefully as she was capable of, but her walk could easily be steps to the finest ballet ever performed by the Russian dance company. She watched as the woman slid on to the high bar stool as gracefully as if the seat wasn't almost waist high to her. What really captured the widows attention was when she wrapped her hands around a mug that she was sure wasn't there a moment ago. She was also pretty sure Tony didn't own a mug with a picture of a lake and castle on it, not to mention the fact that the picture moved. She could see banners waving and trees softly swaying, and something in the lake disturbed the water but it was gone before she had a good look at it. Another thing that would go unsaid was the fact that she was pretty sure the nearest hot chocolate mix could be found ten floors below in the assistants desk drawer. Looking up, she found herself face to face with the darkness under the hood of this chocolate drinker. The mysterious cup and contents on her mind the feeling of being weighted settled over her, she debated mentally what she should do, it wasn't a hard decision she would keep her secrets, she wouldn't let her down again.

When the girl lowered her hood Natasha's mind went into overdrive. She was so young looking, were they the same? Who had trained her? Gave her her abilities? Was the reason she could find no more traces of the red room not because she had done her job well, but because she should have been looking for the purple room instead of red? All these thoughts slammed into her brain at once, almost causing her to miss Thors comment on her youthful appearance. Some of her fears relaxed at the girls age, she would have played up her youth, said she was fifteen. And she could pass for fifteen, she could probably pull off thirteen if she tried. Twenty two was pushing it pretty hard on the high side. The last of her fears vanished when the girl didn't have a name. No one with her training would ever not have a name to give. Hell when she was this girls age she had half a dozen alias's with paperwork and background information in place. Sure there was the mysterious angle, but that usually required a short dress and far more seduction than she put into that shrug. She counted them as lucky that they had the time they did before her boss showed up. Somehow she had missed the girl getting up and changing, she was proven right in her earlier assessment, the girl seemed to dance on to the elevator, never breaking stride, and barely clearing the elevator doors she turned and leaned against the wall as casually as if she rode to the top of buildings with green giants then vanished with no answers on at least four occasions a week. Her boss demanding answers was expected, him demanding answers about someone who he had passed within feet of just seconds prior, also expected. She couldn't deal with this now, too many thoughts were going too fast through her head. Without a word, in the middle of a truly impressive dressing down from one of the most powerful men on the planet, Natasha Romanoff, if thats who she still was, left. Maybe they were alike in some ways. She simply turned on her heel and walked away. She needed time, she had decisions to make. And she just needed time to think. Finding a book to hold she settled in a chair with a wide view of the room, and a direct line of sight to the tesseract, and lost herself in thought.

Clint Barton was as curious as anybody about their sleeping guest, he was more cautious keeping her always in the field of his famously excellent vision. Something about the way she moved reminded him of Natasha on mission. She made no moves that hinted at aggression but he still placed himself farthest from her. When she looked to him he felt fear, not an overwhelming or irrational fear, just a cautious fear. A fear based solely on potential, logically he knew what she had done in the battle. As he looked into the hooded darkness he decided that if they didn't hurt anyone, himself included, he wouldn't be the first to break that trust. Something inside him burst in his heart, primal instincts just below the surface that were all too familiar to him kicked in and demanded answers. Where was this girls father? Who was looking out for her and why had they let her anywhere near yesterday? He saw her write her age on the bar top, but it was meaningless, this beautiful girl was somebody's daughter,and if they couldn't, then he would. He was reminded again of Natasha at the girls answers about her name. He was already in motion by the time Jarvis said director. He knew what was coming but he had a status report to give in person to someone who he respected more than his boss. Hawkeye slipped out through the back and down the service stairs. He was gone, not to be seen until he chose to be.

Tony had woken this morning sore, stiff, and in an uncomfortable position in a armchair. He damn near started singing as he excused himself from the lounge area. "Jarvis?" He asked into thin air. "Good morning sir, it is 8:23 am and t…" Tony cut across the ai "yeah, yeah thats good, but I'm thinking breakfast. Jarvis order breakfast for everybody, tell you what, double it." "You want me to double breakfast sir?" The AI replied. "Yeah, and coffee, remind me to have a Starbucks installed, I'm sure Pepper would be on board with that. Jarvis check the final plans and see if Pepper didn't already have that in the works. Tell them to hold the sarcasm with that breakfast, I think we're all stocked up here". "Yes sir, a double breakfast has been ordered, on the previous version of the towers plans a employee lounge was listed three floors below, it was removed in favor of expansion of floors slated for "personal use". I do believe that Ms Potts most recent sketches indicate she has re-added it in a different location. According to my calculations, with the re-addition to the plans I believe that Ms Potts may be entitled to 17.6% of the credit sir." "Yep all full up here" he said to himself as he made his way behind the bar where he knew a coffee machine was. He looked down over the lounge as the smell of coffee seeped through the room. His eyes landed on the small ball of gray asleep on his sofa. He tried to just be happy he was alive, but that wasn't going to happen until he knew the how, why was a question he also asked himself, but he knew there was no simple answer for that one. He didn't know how, but he knew where to start looking. With a swipe of his fingers he called a screen into being. A couple of taps and he was scanning through news video of the fighting. They were calling it "the battle of new york" simple and accurate. There were clips of each of them, and so far they were getting everyones names or code names right, but nobody could decide on what to call gray. He heard seven different names for her in just the few seconds he watched at normal speed, he would analyse every video on the we in minute detail later, right now he was only concerned about the end. He slowed to normal speed and watched as he flew through the portal. He saw gray follow, the camera cut to a view of the chithari soldiers froze, then fell. The camera returned to a wide shot of the portal, the beam of energy from the roof was gone and the portal was shrinking. He watched as the sky became clear. The camera showed people in the streets some staring into the sky, others celebrating. But what happened, where was he? Had he already come through and no one noticed? The camera shook violently and where once was cautious celebration, there was running and screaming once again. The camera swung around quickly, searching for this new threat, but nothing attached. The sky colored and bolts of power spread across all the sky the camera could see. At the center of power unseen to the cameras a figure, then two emerged and fell. By the time the camera had adjusted from the blinding light they had caught the falling pair and were tracking their progress while zooming in as close as possible. He was clearly able to see himself hanging by one arm from gray. He did the math and wasn't very happy with reality. The amounts of force required were not little numbers. A different view showed the pair separate, he watched as he fell, quick math, no problem, the suit could handle that and more. It's a good thing to, it had been through 'and more' dozens of times yesterday, and now that. In the back of his mind he praised himself just a little, it was a marvel of engineering. He watched as gray fell and tumbled to a stop abruptly. He winced seeing her hand press her ribs, his throat went dry watching her struggle to her feet. He didn't feel any fear for her when the hulk reached out to her. He skipped back when the hulk started walking towards where he lay. He knew this part. He was about to launch into an in-depth analysis of the video when Jarvis announced a security guard had arrived with his breakfast order. He would look closer but he was fairly certain that it would just proved what he believed happened, gray had saved him. There were only a small handful of people who he could say he owed his life to without reservation, gray had just joined a very exclusive club. He had exhausted his considerable resources in search of any family of one man who had saved him, more than once. Ho Yensin schools and public hospital in Gulmira was just a coincidence. Rhodey had been with him through thick and thin, he had saved his life and sanity more often than he cared to remember, he never was concerned about saving his image, but he could overlook that. If he expended all of his considerable brain power into trying to explain just who Pepper was to him, he knew he couldn't do her justice. It was a short list. His hands were busy while he let his thoughts wander over the people he cared for, breakfast was unpacked and spread over half the bar.

Well that makes it simple, no way has she gone unnoticed, he didn't remember seeing her before, but he didn't keep up with child stars. A quick search later and he was sure he would know everything about her, including her boy band crush. He ignored his phone vibrating in his pocket, this was more important. So she wanted to be twenty two huh? No problem he could have a set of papers that would pass any test in less time than it took to get breakfast, he just wondered what name to put down, so he asked. Is she hiding? Running from someone? Not that it matters, after yesterday he was pretty sure he could get her out of any thing short of genocide. Damn, he moved upgrades for Jarvis up the priority list. There was far too much to be said between shield and himself, he didn't want to have this out right now. He needed answers. He made a mental note to check the security video to see where that mug came from. Big bad and bout to get his ass kicked stormed from the elevator shouting as he came. Tony had to admire the move, if he could have skipped the coming conversation with such grace you can bet your ass he would have. It was a short conversation at least Tony's side. It consisted of one word and a very tightly focused repulser blast but he got his message across. With a nod to Banner he made himself comfortable on the couch to await Peppers arrival, a video screen already replaying news video.

The maidens gaze spoke plainly enough, it is most dishonorable to betray those who have shared the field of battle together. His honor would hold through hard trials for her. By any measure this maiden is young, her worries should be of school and feasts, it is not the practice of any species known to him to place such cares on one so young. By the looks on the faces of his teammates it is not common on midguard, as he thought. The small difference in her given age and his first thought mattered not, she was a great beauty and he would have to work hard so the minsterals wrote a song each, for her deeds in battle, and in efforts to describe her beauty. He sympathized with her lack of identity, not long ago he had been confronted with no option but to become a new man, a better man. His anger at so quickly being proven right by the director the body less voice had just announced arriving must have caused him to not see the gray maiden rise nor change. He knew their paths would cross again soon. Standing behind an ally in battle was not something Thor was used to. But that was all the roll to play when the metal man faced off against the dishonorable man in black. Thor placed himself close to the cube, he had come so close to failing and losing not just his brother but also the woman he loved, the cube would not leave his presence until it was safely again locked away.

Steve looked up when the quiet chat and any sounds of eating stopped. There she sat one empty stool away. It struck him again how tiny she was. She had looked small in the hulks arms, but it's hard to tell. Curled up on the couch he couldn't tell, only now could he really see. She looked up from her drink and to each person in turn. He felt shame, remembering how close he had come, what he had done and he promised himself that he wouldn't quit again, he felt like he should tell her, if anybody deserves to know what really happened he felt like it should be her. Until he had a chance to talk to her he would keep her secrets. Thor said something, not important, how old are you? She looks like she could be sixteen, she could be but she's not. Her eyes, it's not possible. Colors like this don't exist, I could spend the rest of my life looking into those eyes, but there's a sadness there, loss, too much lost. No name? Not much I can do about it, doesn't change anything. I wonder if I'll get court martialed if nobody can find a paper trail that proves fury actually exists.

Out of the avengers Bruce had the least interaction with the sleeping guest. He was antsy for her to wake, he had questions he had been searching for the answer to for decades. How was she alive? Nobody escaped the hulks wrath unscathed, even Thor who had fought alongside the other guy had received a punch that would have killed an mortal it landed on. But this strange women had stood in the shadow of his alter ego and walked away completely unharmed. He even remembered her through the hulks eyes, he never got more than random flashes of color and rage when he tried to recall his time transformed. He may be getting answers soon, it was probably polite to wait until she had finished her first cup of coffee. Where did she get chocolate from? Before he could begin questioning her he found himself looking where her face should be but finding only darkness. He felt the beast inside him stir, he was content, being in the presence of his girl calmed the constant anger he had grow accustomed to. Like a muscle that had held strain for so long that you become unaware of the constant exertion, for the first time in years, doctor Banner was able to loosen the stranglehold he was forced to keep on his emotions. For more chances like this he would promise her everything he owned and more, keeping her secrets wouldn't even be an inconvenience. He doubted anyone would question him too intensely, he knew that the other guy was just as protective if not more than himself. His heart went out to the young girl. He knew that he should be kept far from children this one included. He knew he should leave, that would be best for everyone, he also knew that he wouldn't put up more than a token effort when the time came. He wouldn't deny himself the company of friends or the possibility of time spent in her presence. He was tempted to make a deal with the other guy when director fury arrived. He missed all but the final moments of her departure. Bruce stepped away, he had no desire to test the limits of the calm left in her wake, besides he had better things to do. It had been a while since he had played board games, but candyland was calling to him.

Night had fallen long ago, the only sign of the girl in gray was the constant news coverage, on every channel. The team kept silent track of her throughout the day, each with their own thoughts to keep them occupied. Tony found himself with company as he took up a position near the elevator, agent Romanoff had also drifted over in the last few hours. He had spent a good portion of his day reviewing and analyzing the mountain of data Jarvis had compiled, the evidence was conclusive, there wouldn't even be a body to bury if she hadn't followed him. If the relief he felt just hearing Jarvis announce her return was disproportionate to how long she had been gone he paid it no attention. Gray wasn't alone when the elevator reached the upper floors of his tower, two people on either side all but carried the petite girl between them. Within seconds the three exited the elevator to be surrounded by heros. While Tony played gracious host, the girl stumbled her way to the couch where she had slept the previous night.

Pepper was prepared to greet and thank the young woman who she had watched save the love of her life. She wasn't prepared for the girl to climb onto the couch next to her and curl into a ball that looked too small to contain someone who had done the things she had watched this amazing person do, through camera and screen of course. If she was unprepared for the reality of someone she had begun to see as a hero, she was stunned speechless when a blanket of dark purple hair spread across her lap, the small girl lay her head on her leg. Tony had to turn away, he worried for his health if he held his laughter any longer. He loved her with all his heart, but at that moment, with that look on her face, he knew she was it, all he could ever want. He needed to go shopping… better yet, who better to make something than himself, without exaggerating, the greatest craftsman in the world. A trip to his work shop wouldn't even raise her notice.

She was telegraphing like a civilian, but just this once she didn't care. She wanted her back here, she had stared at Stark for at least an hour, just reassuring herself that he was alive and not lost, alone, dead in a galaxy on the other side of the universe. She had no such reassurance about her. She joined Stark by the elevators at Jarvis's announcement, while Tony spoke with the awestruck men who had returned her, she slid next to her and led her to the couch where Pepper waited to meet the final team member. Natasha looked down at her empty arms, the girl had slipped from her grip and now lay curled, much the same as before, but with the addition of a very confused pillow. She was here now and that was enough. She could wait, as long as she could wait where she was. Thor was content with his teammates assurance that the fair maiden was well, and continued his vigil over the source of such strife.

A/N seeking editor please send me a pm if you'd like to help.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

On her second morning in this new world she woke to find her couch surrounded by heros. She allowed her eyes to open this morning, taking in the activities of those around her. Tony tapped away at a glass screen that fit in the palm of his hand. Black widow had staked out the other end of the couch, her feet taking the middle cushion as she flicked through various news feeds depicting scenes of both the battle and the clean up efforts that would be on going for quite some time still. Bruce sat in the arm chair nearest her side of the couch catching up on periodicals he had missed while traveling. Thor sat at the bar, a large platter of pop-tarts pulled in front of him, The Captain sat across from her in intense concentration, a sketch book propped up in his lap.

She stretched, drawing the attention of the room, she intertwined her legs with Natasha's as she smoothly lengthened her small body.. Flipping herself around she slid up Natasha's body, resting her head on her tummy, her arms pulling her close. The tension in the room rose as each person waited, with baited breath, to see what the assassin would do. The day started with a shock that left them speechless when Natasha reached down and gently began running her fingers through her hair. After a contented sigh the purple haired girl looked to each person in turn, now that she had their attention, with the slightest of eyebrow raises she silently asked the question "well?"

Surprisingly the first question came from Pepper, having joined Tony in his lap, her question was unexpected "did you sleep well" was all she asked. A smiling nod was her answer. The follow up question from Tony followed the same line of thought "you know this tower has bedrooms right? There's one set aside for you if you want it." She looked to Tony, her deep purple eyes locked on to his smooth brown, a feeling of gratitude swept gently over him, unknown to him, the same feeling passed through Pepper as well. Tony basked in the feeling for just a moment before he cut off the doctors greeting. "Your an empath?" He questioned, immediately followed by, "can you read minds too... Nope didn't spontaneously combust, didn't even blush". She felt the smooth tummy under her cheek firm and the fingers stroking her hair pause, her eyes fell, breaking contact with Tony's. Unseen to all but felt by one Natasha made a conscious effort to breath normally, she prayed she not be disturbed. But with the fall of her hands from her sides she knew her doubts were known. She trusted her, she really did, despite everything she had been taught, and a lifetime of training that told her not to, she trusted her. The surprise of this self realiziation had caused her to pause, it had nothing to do with the mind powers she knew the girl possessed. She wanted to reach down and pull her to herself, she settled for resuming her fingers journey through her silky hair.

Pushing herself to a sitting position she stretched again arching her back before crossing her legs under her, leaning fowards she pulled the mug of hot chocolate from the coffee table and took a slow sip. "Ok I have to know, where did that come from?" Bruce asked motioning to the mug in her hands. He wasn't the only one that looked like they would like to hear the answer to that. She replied with a small mischievous smile over the rim of her cup as she sipped. It didn't take a genius such as Anthony Stark, Mr fantastic, or Bruce Banner to see that her lack of answer failed to satisfy Tony's curiosity. Just from the look on his face she could tell Jarvis would be analyzing video in minute detail very soon. On the other side of the couch a decision had been made, Natasha reached out and wrapped her hand around the girls, she gently guided both the girls hands and her mug of chocolate to her lips. The chocolate was smooth and rich, definitely not instant, it seemed to fill her with warmth from the inside out. If Clint had been there he probably would have had a heart attack. The level of trust she was showing in her own way was equal to that she had for himself. "So have you decided on a name yet" she asked nonchalantly. A genuine smile bloomed on the girls face, warming her more satisfyingly than any beverage could. A thoughtful look and a little head shake was her answer. "Ms gray, I'd like to join you today", Steve's voice cut in. "Down there, I'm not really doing much good here. I don't think Thor's letting the cube out of his sight until it's back on asguard. So maybe I can give you a hand. Down there." He finished slightly awkwardly. Even without chocolate to compare to Steve knew what it was like to feel warm again, maybe for the first time in 70 years, as she turned her smile from Natasha at her side to himself.

"You know I would love to help too, I mean, who wouldn't love to spend the day being followed around by every camera in New York, hundreds of fans, while saving people? Actually that sounds like just about the perfect day, just add a nice scotch in the mix and we coulda been soul mates. But sorry I got a date with jolly over there in the labs, you know, if we want reindeer games gone" with the gentlest of squeezes to Pepper in his lap Tony said. Unsaid but communicated clearly to Pepper were the words "away from the people I care about".

Thor boomed into the conversation from his seat at the bar, "Aye, I shall not allow further harm to come to midguard from my own lack of vigilance" he glanced to the side where the cube, perched on a tall pedestal, enclased in glass sat clearly in his line of sight.

"Speaking of cubes, we're going to need that one down in the lab later, probably after lunch so that should give you a little break, point break" Tony quipped. Thor nodded, he knew the cube would be safe with the metal man and the green bezerker. Midguardians may think of him as a god, but he needed sleep and food like all living things. He also had plans to contact shield to see to his brothers keeping.

Pepper listed out her own plans for the day, which mostly revolved around coordinating relief efforts, and authorizing funds and equipment transfers for said efforts. Tony watched in fascination as his girlfriend planned and replanned, making changes and contingencies. He didn't even try to stop himself as he stretched up to reach her lips with his own. "Whatever you need, you got it" he told her after breaking their kiss.

Doctor Banner studied the young lady in front of him. He had felt things from her before, but never considered that she was even more than the considerablely impressive young girl she had shown herself to be. He felt inside himself, the other guy was still there, as always, but still content. Bruce let himself relax the tiniest bit. The other guy remained quiet. Opening his eyes he watched as Natasha sipped from the mysterious cup. He let himself bask in the feeling of relaxation he so rarely felt when he kept such a tight hold on his emotions. When she stood he spoke "I am.. yeah lab. Will you be back tonight?" The first part mostly a stutter, far more sure and with a slight hint of fear, the second part was said while gazing into her eyes. The smile he received was no less warm than the one she had gifted to the black widow or the Captain, but also carried a feeling of reassurance. Her nod put his fears to rest for now. He could work with this, he could bargain with the other guy if he had to. Building the device that would send Loki far away from her would be something the other guy would understand to be the best way to protect her. Just knowing that she would be returning, and the effect her presence had on the other guy gave him a small piece of mind.

Tony's eyes narrowed slightly as she stood, he had been looking at her, at least in her direction since she had woken. She was wearing a gray hoodie and tights, but now she was again dressed in her gray suit she had worn during the battle. It was in perfect shape, not a scratch or tear, it even looked freshly laundered. Her hood was down and nothing on her face gave away the slightest hint that anything had happened. The Captain stood and made his way to the elevator "let me get changed and I'll join you in a minute." He called over his shoulder.

Natasha had failed to share her plans for the day. She was unsuprised when Thor asked to speak with her as everyone separated. "Lady Natasha, I wish to speak with your director, as much as I am lothe to, while he guards Loki he is a necessary evil to be endured" she nodded to him, "I was going to speak to him myself" turning to Tony before he dragged Bruce away she asked "so are rooms only for people who sleep on the couch?" "Jarvis will show you where yours is, your sharing a floor with bird boy if he ever shows up" Tony was use to people taking advantage of his hospitality he didn't think anything of it when people accepted things from him, so the sincerity in the Widows voice caught him off guard when she thanked him. He was equally sincere when he nodded back in acknowledgment.

Steve stealed his nerves as he got back into the elevator, he knew he wasn't the best around pretty girls. Just thinking about how nervous he had been when he had met Peggy and most of their interactions following that, made him want to laugh and cry. He looked at his reflection in the polished metal of the doors, he stood tall and proud in his Captain America uniform. And that's who he needed to be now, the one that people can count on to help, the one that will keep going when everyone else tired. He loosened his shield and slid it off, he wasn't looking for a fight today, he would be ready if one came around, but today a job needed doing that was probably harder. Rebuilding took a sustained strength that had nothing to do with being a super soldier. While he was lost in thought the the elevator had returned, the doors opened to reveal the girl waiting side by side with agent Romanoff. "Ladies" he greeted politely as they both joined him. "Jarvis could you take me to my room please" Natasha asked after the doors had closed. "Of course agent Romanoff" Jarvis replied, the elevator already in motion. The ride down was quiet but not awkward he didn't even notice her leaning against his side until they had arrived in the lobby and she had stood up.

When two heros of New York appeared the explosion of questions from the gathered reporters at the base of Stark tower was deafening. Like the day before, the girl completely bypassed the crowds, leading the Captain forward, she found a crew of people she recognized and began.

Tony didn't say much on the trip to the labs, his mind was going a mile a second, ideas about how to catch the moment strange things happened around the girl, improvements to thors transport device, designs for jewelery, he knew he was going to be leaning pretty hard on Bruce, but he knew the work and the company were something Bruce would enjoy. On arriving in the lab Bruce set himself up at the same workstation he had used the previous day. Tony rolled across the lab in a spinning chair to a large clear space in the middle. "Jarvis bring up the video from this morning, from when she woke up till now" bringing a holographic display into existence in the air in front of him. Bruce had already pulled up the plans for the transportation device but was now watching with facination as the video played. The first thing he noticed was the girl was out of focus. Could have a damaged camera. "Jarvis gimme another view" he instructed. "Of course Sir, but I think you'll find that all of the recordings of ms gray are similarly affected." Jarvis split the display to show several camera angles at the same time. In each the only thing out of focus was the girls face. "Huh, that's interesting"

Steve wiped his brow again, perhaps his iconic leather uniform hadn't been the best idea. Sure it had done its job well, fresh energy seemed to flow through tired workers. Rescue efforts hadn't stopped when gray had returned to the tower, teams of people had swapped with tired teams and the work continued. They had rallied around him as he took his place at the grindstone. That had been hours ago, and the day was warming up nicely, and leather had many admirable qualities, breathability wasn't one of them. He wasn't about to let that slow him down. He watched as gray lifted her hands again, the pulse of purple was expected at this point, it still amazed him to see tons of rubble lift into the air silently. Emerging from the building he handed the two children he carried to a person waiting with stretcher and large red bag ready. That was the last of the lights in this building, he knew the next building was already surrounded with a crew ready to race in as soon as the rubble lifted. Everyone on the crew he was currently working with would move to the second building down, but he had stayed with the girl for every one. She had fallen effortlessly into a pattern and he followed her lead. After what felt like days but was only hours he called for a break, he knew that he could keep going, but he wasn't worried about himself. He had seen how the team had treated her, and nothing would make him face the wrath that would come if he let anything happen to her. He hadn't been in the room when she had returned last night, but it wasn't hard to find out what happened. She had come home too tired to stand on her own and immediately went to sleep. Short breaks every few hours. He would have liked to make her stop long enough for a quick meal or a cat nap, but he wouldn't stop and didn't expect her to either.

They were farther from the tower than she had been yesterday, progress had been made in the night. He guided her slightly away from the busiest buildings and found a place to sit. He wiped his brow again, looking down at her with a tired smile. He let a gasp escape when his suit changed from hot and sweaty to comfortable and dry. He stare at her hand wrapped around his forearm, it took longer than he was proud of for him to thank her, was there any limits to the variety of things she could do? He had seen her limited by exhaustion, but this was different, thoughts of what she could be capable of ran through his mind. He didn't notice at first when her attention was drawn to something in the window across the street. The car dealership had survived mostly intact. On a pedestal that he was sure would rotate if power was on, sat a machine that could only be described as sexy. A bold blue broken by two stripes of white that ran from hood to trunk, the 1965 Shelby cobra screamed power and beauty. It felt natural to hold her hand as she led him across the street. He almost fell on his face when she pulled him through the wall and window as if it wasn't even there. He looked out the window at the street they had just been on, "wha...how.. um I don't think we should be in here" he stammered. Looking back to the girl who had released his hand after he recovered from his stumble, he saw that she couldn't care less, she circled the car, her eyes taking in every detail, and her fingers feathering lightly over the smooth curves. She looked lost in thought as she traced her fingers over a badge on the car. The Captain cleared his throat quietly "I think they're waiting for us" he said softly, this was enough to break whatever trance her mind had her under. She nodded and took his hand as she passed, again pulling him through glass and concrete as if it was as insubstantial as smoke. They returned to their labor, there were a lot of people who needed help, and the day was young.

Natasha gave her new home a cursory inspection, it was spacious, hell it was bigger than anywhere she had ever called home, and that was just the living room/kitchen/dining room/balcony area. Several doors led off from the open floor plan apartment. She kept a slow pace when she cleaned up for the day. She wasn't looking forward to the next few conversations she had planned. Pulling a small box from the bag she had retrieved when she had escorted Loki to his temporary accommodations, she unboxed the brand new phone. She powered it on and dialed a number that was a better protected secret than nuclear launch codes. When her partners voice came on the call she only needed two words to tell him the plan, "I'm out" she said with conviction. there was a long pause on the other end, she almost hung up. It would be a waste of a burner, but she had spares, the two words she heard back were exactly what she had hoped he would say "three hours". She snapped the cheap phone closed and let it fall to the floor. Huh that's interesting, looks like it comes fully furnished, it even had a broom and dustpan, I guess in case the robots recharging.

Thor had delivered the cube as requested and now sat watching as doctor Banner took measurements and transferred them to the light model of what his people had designed to retrieve their princes. He also watched as Tony moved around the room from project to project, a constant source of chatter. He had just begun to dose when the voice of Jarvis addressed him, "Mr. Odinson, agent Romanoff wishes me to inform you that she will be in the main lounge when you are ready to depart to shield." "My thanks Jarvis, I shall join her now". He turned to the men he trusted, "I shall return quickly..." He started to say but was cut off by Tony "we got this, you take care of that" Thor nodded, in his own way Tony was showing how much he had come to trust him. Their first meeting had been a conflicting about his taking his brother from his custody, and now it appeared that the metal man trusted him to handle his brother as part of the team.

Natasha had decided on discretion as the best way to travel, to that end she had dressed plainly and led Thor, who she had redressed, out through the under ground parking garage. They made sure to give the cameras surrounding gray and the Captain a wide berth, with transportation around the city limited to emergency vehicles, it was half an hour before they met with Clint. He waited for them at a rendezvous they had used before. A short walk later and a turn into what looked like a service entrance, and the three heros found themselves with immediate appointments with director fury. Natasha motioned for Thor to go first, she figured that agent Hill would be escorting him today, and she wanted to speak with the director privately. "I will see my brother now" Thor's voice commanded, and it was a command, one issued by a god whos patience had run out long ago. "If he has been harmed beyond his injuries from battle, when next we speak I shall make my displeasure known." Thor made no attempt to veil neither his feelings nor threats to his false ally. "Agent Hill will you show Mr Odinson to the prisoner" was all director fury said. His eyes never strayed from the pair of assassins. Without a word Natasha turned and led them to director furys own office. She waited as the director entered his credentials into the security system, then followed him into the office. She didn't sit, she wasn't going to be here long, Clint stood beside her as he had time and time again. She cut the director off, his questions and orders had begun as soon as the door shut. "I'm out" she repeated for the second time today, beside her Clint spoke up "me too". The director argued their decisions, he pleaded and bribed. When the first threat fell from his lips he knew he had made a grave mistake.

Nick Fury was not someone to be crossed lightly, he was a man use to being obeyed and getting what he wanted. He had served his country and this world bravely for decades, he doubted his chest was big enough to hold all the decorations he had won. Nobody could call Nickolas J. Fury a coward in any sense of the word, and now he knew real fear. He had gotten too close, become too familiar with the people who worked for him, he let his guard down. He wondered if there was an antidote to whatever coated the knife at his throat. He was informed, in no uncertain terms, that he had fallen out of favor with the avengers, and that furture working relations with the team would be initiated by themselves. It was also strongly recommended that any files concerning individual team members and the team as a whole disappear.

When the call came Steve made a command decision. He had been watching her more closely the last few hours, she hadn't swayed but she had slowed down considerably since the sun set. He was a little relieved she had, even he couldn't keep the pace they had started at for long. So when Jarvis informed him that the rest of the team was gathered at the tower and food had been ordered he made the call to end the days work. She didn't need to be carried home this evening, but the Captain found nothing to complain about when she leaned against his side and held his hand on the walk back. The elevator doors opened to reveal the whole team gathered around a massive table that hadn't been there when they left this morning. The table was firmly held down by a mountain of food. Steve pulled out a chair for the girl before seating himself. At Tony's insistence he served himself, and caught up with the progress of various projects everyone was involved in. As dinner wound down, everyone's attention was drawn to the girl as the waved one hand through the air, much like Tony did when calling for a holographic screen. After two tries she gave up and waved her hand differently, in the middle of the room a familiar blue and white car materialised. Steve broke the silence that followed the car into being. "She's got good taste, we saw one of those when we were taking a break earlier today" he said. It wasn't a surprise when Tony spoke next "oh, you like that huh? Jarvis transfer the 65 cobra to ms gray, just leave the name blank for now." He grinned up at the girl who was now standing, and shaking her head. She pointed to the car then back to herself. Yeah it's a great car, and now you own one, I just gave it to you. It downstairs if you wanna see it" by the time he was finished she had made her way to the car and was circling it, her finger tips tracing lightly over it. She reached the name plate on the car and stopped. "This vehicle is called a cobra is that correct Captain?" "Yeah I think so, at least that's what it says on the car." Steve answered. "Then I'm afraid this one is claimed by another, no doubt whoever Shelby is will wish it returned. Before Tony could start on the history of the car and it's designer Clint spoke up, "Shelby? Is that the name you decided on?"

After a quick phone call, everyone decided to spend the night. The party had moved into the lounge, Steve changed and rejoined them. Nobody saw Shelby change but somehow she was wearing casual clothes again. So far every almost answer the girl gave only created more questions. It wasn't long before questions and answers evolved into several conversations about unified theories and hypothetical boundaries. In the middle of all the conversations slept the now named girl. She was stretched out on the sofa she seemed to prefer, but she wasn't alone. During the course of the evening Bruce had ended up on one end of the couch and Natasha on the other, she now lay using Bruce's leg as a pillow with her legs across Natasha's. Finding Shelby's head in his lap Bruce commented during a lull in the conversation, "she's very cuddly isn't she?" Steve replied with a smile, "I've noticed that, I've also noticed a couple of other things too" in hushed tones he told them about her ability to walk through solid walls and how she had pulled him with her. When Steve finished Tony took over, telling everyone who didn't know about the inability to get a clear picture of her face.

Natasha was getting upset with the way the team was talking about Shelby, "so, she hasn't done anything to hurt anyone, so why are we whispering like she's dangerous?" She asked. "She is dangerous Nat" Clint answered. "Everybody in this room is, hell I bet Pepper is probably the most dangerous person I've ever met." He held up to the stares admirably. With one signature you can make or break entire companies, one uncareful word to the press and you can trigger a buying or selling frenzy that effects the global economy. I don't know about you guys, but if that's not dangerous and scary I don't know what is." Pepper protested, she would never do that. She was very responsible in her job as CEO. Bruce was the one to point out that everyone knew she wouldn't, but that didn't change the fact that she could. "Yes she powerful but power doesn't make someone dangerous, it's how you wield power that determines if you're a good guy or a villain." Said Tony, he had been both at different times in his life. "She's not evil I can tell that much, but she's been hurt before, badly." Natasha added. "Doesn't matter, I'm keeping her" said Stark. Looking right at Natasha he said "I owe her a debt". That statement coming from Tony made everyone stop and think.

Thor studied lady Shelby as she slept, he was debating whether or not he should extended asguards welcome to her. Her magic strongly reminded him of not just Loki's magic, but also that of Loki's teacher, Queen Frigga, his own mother. He knew magic users were few in the nine realms, would she welcome the opportunity to learn from the greatest sorceress in all the realms. He doubted the rest of the avengers would appreciate him running off with her. She seemed to be important to each for their own reasons. He recognized the words Tony had used, and understood their deeper meaning. He would speak with his family first, he could easily hear the all father's refusal, but just as easily he thought he knew who would win in the end.

Not long after Tony managed to silence the room the party broke up and each person ended their day in their own way. Almost as an afterthought Tony called up to the ceiling "Jarvis, let's see what we can do about getting replacement copies of all Shelby's paperwork, remember to look twenty two years back." " Yes sir" Jarvis replied. "would you like me to begin searching with any specific last name sir?" No, just one name, like Madonna, or Cher." Tony answered, he glanced slyly at pepper. "no Tony, you are not adopting her without her consent. Just one name on the illegally forged documents please Jarvis" pepper said, she knew it was pointless to try to stop him, but she could at least sway him some. "Of course Ms Potts, I shall have the results of my search by morning, sleep well Sir, ma'am." Jarvis bid them goodnight.

Clint followed Natasha to their shared floor, and into her room. "How long are you staying?" Natasha asked. She herself was unsure of her own answer to that same question. "Not sure yet, I thought I might stick around for a couple of days, help with the clean up and guard duty." He shrugged. Since he had reported in and been thoroughly checked over he was cleared to finish the current mission before being forced to take a mandatory vacation. "I was thinking about inviting Shelby to stay for a while." He finished after a short pause. Natasha couldn't hold in the laugh that followed clints statement, "you may find yourself in a fight between Tony and Thor." She wasn't the only one that had picked up the possessive feelings most of them had developed towards the cuddly girl. "I figured you saw it too." was clints reply. "Just make sure you have plenty of room, she does something to Bruce, it's almost like she can see both him and the hulk at the same time, she can calm them both, and that's not something Bruce is going to want to be far from. The Captains also becoming quite attached." She had slowly been making her way to the bedroom as they spoke. "Consider my room booked too." She told him as she rounded the corner. " You too Nat?" The smirk on his face clear in his voice. The smirk didn't last long when the quiet but extremely sincere "Yes" came from the darkness. Clint let himself out, he had important phone calls to make.

Bruce had resigned himself to sleeping on the couch, as long as she would allow,he would gladly be her pillow. He shifted position as slowly as he could, he hated the thought of disturbing her. Somehow he found himself in a comfortable place, more quickly and easily than should have been, he thought her magic was involved but couldn't be sure. Either way, he was now comfortable and Shelby had somehow ended up wrapped around him with her head resting over his heart. He decided it didn't really matter that he had more questions than ever before about her, he would let himself and the other guy soak in the calm that she induced in him. Not a bad way to end the day.

Thor sat in the mechanical chair Tony had provided for his use. He leaned back, allowing the chair to automatically raise his feet. He waved as each teammate retired for the evening. Thor used the glass panel Tony had given him to look through the book of faces to find how his lovely lady Jane fared this day.

Natasha lay in bed, her mind more calm than she had any right to expect, it seems that having made her decisions it allowed her to relax and sleep like she hadn't in years. She had left the door open, if he joined her she would share everything he wanted to know, she doubted he would be with her tonight, but she was going to leave the offer out there.

A/N seeking beta. Also I've been asked to leave better author notes. This story is best read as a rough draft. Below is something that has no bearing on the story but just a little background on how Clint's wife may feel.

Omake? This phone has only ever received calls from two of the three numbers that could call it. It never failed to stop her heart when it rang. It was her own personal torture device and her lifeline. When it rang in the middle of the night she woke fully before she even reached for the phone. She felt her pulse racing to catch up, it was a long few seconds before she registered more than his warm soothing voice, she hoped he took her confusion about the current conversation as the results of her being woken up in the early hours, and not her moment required to let herself breath again. She caught up quickly, what he was talking about would change everything. His news of Nat went a long way to showing her that everything had already changed. Natasha had been a very complicated situation at one time in her life. She would always wonder what could be happening when they were away together but she knew it didn't really matter, she would welcome him home like the hero he had always been to her, and her too should he not come home alone again.

She was worried, scared even, but she had made her choice, she wouldn't waver now. "You know i trust you, do what you need to, I'll get things ready here. I love you Clint, just make sure you come home soon." After a lingering goodnight Laura Barton laid down and fell into a deeper and more restful sleep than she was before.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Bruce slowly surfaced from the fog of deep and restful sleep. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so rested, he didn't feel the weight of Shelby on his chest anymore. He looked down past his now laying form to see his feet tangled with hers as she watched TV and ate from a bowl of sliced fruit in her hands. If this was how he could feel… it was more than he could think of at the moment. For now he and the other guy were content. As everyone gathered around, with breakfast or beverages in hand, it became apparent that two people had yet to join them.

Clint and Natasha stepped out of the elevator dressed in full combat gear, the same they had worn just days before while saving the world. Every voice fell silent as they took in their teammates serious expressions, coupled with their attires painted a grim image. "Tony how serious were you about a place to stay for a while?" Natasha asked. Instead of answering Tony called up to his ai "Jarvis?" The British voice answered smoothly "besides Mr Stark and Ms Potts, the only people with residential access to the entire building are the people in this room now. Mr Stark has also had me submit a change of address form on everyone's behalf listing the tower as your current residence. I have also been instructed to assist you in any way I am able, as I currently do for Mr Stark and Ms Potts." Tony cut through the other ways Jarvis was listing that had been prepared for permanent residents "pretty serious".

The Captain was the first on his feet, already in command mode "what's the situation" he asked his teammates. "easy there cap there is no situation, unless you count Natasha's drama queen tendencies" The atmosphere had eased slightly at Clint's reassurance, it broke completely when Natasha hip checked Clint as she passed. "So… what's up with the suits then?" Asked doctor Banner. Clint shrugged, "figured we'd give Cap and Shelby a hand this morning". While he had said it very casually, it was obvious the tension this decision was causing both Hawkeye and the black widow. With the grace of a toddler herding cats Tony pointed out the elephant in the room "gonna out yourselves as super heroes on live TV? It's been done before, I should know, I was the one that did it. Tell you what, just to ensure at least one camera catches it, I'll stand behind you" it was self-serving, ego inflating, and egomaniacal but that's just how Tony showed he cared. "Hey don't use code names either, at least until the lawyers have had a go first, wouldn't want to lose out on a lucrative copyright claim"

Clint hadn't dealt with the billionaire much, but even a surface glance told him that Tony wasn't lying, but he had more planned. Not just for their big reveal, but also legal protection too.

The streets around Stark tower had become a city, a city whos soul purpose was to provide relief. The media camped around the main entrance to the building were the exception. For the last few days, at least one hero of New York had emerged from the building to help with clean up and rescue efforts. Today something different was happening, several large men came out and placed a simple podium on the top step. Pepper Potts, long time suspected love interest of Tony Stark and CEO of Stark industries, stepped out and addressed the crowd. "The avengers would like to say a few words" stepping back she turned to the doors just as the entire avengers team stepped out. It was the first time anyone had seen them all together since the battle ended. The flashes of individual cameras melted into one bright light that blinded everyone. With the accompanying shouted questions, a flash bang grenade wouldn't have been noticed. Stepping forward in his full iron Man armor Tony began "ahem, first off, get off my lawn." He joked, earning a laugh from the crowd. It was a trick he developed long ago, becoming more serious he started in earnest, "many of you may remember a few years ago when I successfully privitized world peace, since then I've expanded a bit, behind me stands the team that is the future of world security, not just from home grown baddies, but we stand ready to defend the earth from any threat. So without further ado may I introduce 'The Avengers'". Tony waited until he could be heard over the crowds cheers. "I give you Hawkeye, black widow, Thor, Captain America, the hulk (sorry guys this is his mellow mode), and...

A/N seeking beta. Also please help, I didn't plan a super hero name for her.


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